10 Hours
by Reina de Rosas
Summary: 10 hours, 600 minutes, 6000 seconds from Cyprus, Ohio to Chicago, Illinois. What do Rusty and Casey talk about in between? This is the story of the Cartwright’s road trip home.


Disclaimer: I hereby formally state, not now, nor ever, do I own any of the characters from the show; I am merely barrowing for my own amusement. All of this belongs to creator Patrick Sean Smith, ABC Family, Piller/Segan Productions and so on.

In other words, just don't sue me! Besides, I'm just a mere college senior with no money, so I don't think you'll get anything worthwhile, just making up stories in my head for my own amusement, (I think I already told you that!) 'cuz it's more interesting that my actual schoolwork!

Author's note: I just have to say that I am totally heartbroken over Rusty and Jen K! They were just too adorable and I hearted them so much. It was so sad Monday when they revealed Jen K to be the mole. I really thought they were good for each other, so sad. (Sighs sadly)

Summary: 10 hours, 600 minutes, 6000 seconds from Cyprus, Ohio to Chicago, Illinois. What do Rusty and Casey talk about in between? This is the story of the Cartwright's road trip home.

Spoilers: set post-Black & White and Read All Over

Rating: T

10 Hours

Chapter 1

"Don't touch that."

Rusty snapped back his hand from the plastic knob at Casey's warning. Sitting back in his seat, the teenager sighed and looked out the window as the radio played on, his eyes taking in the passing buildings, structures that were once so foreign to him, remembering the bumbling freshman struggling to make his way around campus.

It still amazed him, when Rusty stopped to think about it, how much had changed in just a few months time.

The two Cartwrights remained silent as they left campus, heading out of town as Casey drove past the lone sign with the parting words "Leaving Cyrus, Ohio city limits", finally pointing the vehicle west onto the Interstate for the first part of their long road trip home.

Casey was the first to speak. "So you want to talk first, or should I?"

"You first." Rusty stifled a quick yawn, trying to stay awake despite his drained energy from the night before. "Why are you even heading home? I thought you were already flying off to Aspen with Evan for winter break."

"Yeah, me too." Casey said, feeling the tightening in her chest, the events of last night still reverberating in her head. "But Aspen probably wouldn't be so enjoyable now since Evan broke up with me last night."

Rusty looked over at his sister. "Wait, Evan Chambers broke up with you? Evan-crawling-on-his-knees-desperately-begging-your-forgiveness-for-cheating-on-you-Chambers? What happened?"

The blonde focused her sight on the road as she remembered how quickly everything fell apart this week. Was it just two weeks ago that she, Casey Catherine Cartwright, was the lady in red, crowned Omega Chi Sweetheart, a smiling Evan standing at her side?

It was all starting to feel like another lifetime ago.

Now with the aftermath of the newpaper article to martyring herself for ZBZ to the look in Evan's eyes as he stormed out of her bedroom, so much was crumbling all at once. "Rusty, it's a lot of stuff you wouldn't understand right now."

Rusty gave Casey an irritated look. "For God's sake, can you stop treating me like I'm some naïve schoolgirl? I'm eighteen years old and in college. I've had sex for crying out loud!"

"Ok, didn't need to hear that." Casey groaned, wincing at the words.

Rolling his eyes, Rusty continued. "Anyways, what I meant was that we're only", taking a quick glance at his watch, "twenty-three minutes into a ten hour drive. I'm pretty sure we have enough time for you to explain it to me so that I can 'understand'." Rusty emphasized with finger quotations.

"Besides, you also promised you would explain everything."

Casey remained silent for a moment before letting out an exasperated sigh. "Fine. But so you know Rusty, no one does finger quotes anymore." She took a deep breath, attempting to find the best starting point. "Well, after the article ran and Je–" Casey halted, trying to refrain from mentioning the former pledge's name, "and realizing the source was a member of ZBZ, our Nationals dispatched a liaison to review the validity of the article and to ultimately decide whether or not to shut down the ZBZ house."

The blonde reached a hand over to the radio, lowering the volume down a notch. "Frannie, the ZBZ president, planned on lying to the liaison and telling her whatever she wanted to hear in order to keep the house. I knew it was only a matter of time before she found out that everything in the article was true and lying was only going to piss her off, possibly even more, in the process."

Long story short, I wanted us to just come clean and accept whatever punishment we had coming. Not exactly what Frannie wanted to do. She pretty much told me to shut up and ultimately threatened to use me as the sacrificial offering to Nationals if that what was needed to end our problems."

"Wait," Rusty interrupted, "so they kicked you out of ZBZ? Is that why Evan broke up with you?"

"No, shut up and I'll tell you what happened." Casey told him. "Anyways, I met up with the liaison secretly and confessed everything, hoping that I could fix things before they got any worse. I even accepted responsibility for everything that happened and asked her to take it out on me as long as the house could stay open."

"Wow." Rusty mentioned, amazed at how far she was willing to go for a group of girls, one of whom was ready to cut her loose and another who enjoyed making Casey's life miserable. But Rusty got it; Casey loved Zeta Beta Zeta as a second family.

"The liaison told me that she'd think about her decision. So the next day, she stipulated certain conditions the house had to uphold in order to stay open. I spent the whole time waiting for her to tell me to voluntarily withdraw from ZBZ. Instead, the liaison removed Frannie as president and named me interim president until spring elections."

Rusty just sat there, trying to absorb everything his sister just said. "So, you're not kicked out of ZBZ? You're their new president? Wow. That's, wow."

Casey nodded in agreement. "I know. I was just stunned. I wanted to be president, but not like this. I mean; Frannie's my big sister, practically my mentor. She's taught me everything I know about being a ZBZ."

"But she wanted to kick you out." Rusty pointed out.

"I know that Rusty." Casey stressed, her grip tightening on the wheel as she remembered Frannie's threatening words. "And as much as I cared about Frannie, I knew that she had her flaws, and I overlooked them because I didn't want to lose her as a friend."

It was just, everything all happened so fast. One minute I was waiting to be 'suggested' to withdraw from the ZBZ sisterhood, the next I _am_ the leader of the ZBZ sisterhood. Frannie got so furious and stormed out, but not before giving me a death look." Casey felt a shiver draw down her spine, remembering the cold silence that answered Frannie's insistent demands of the injustice created from her removal.

"And this all leads to Evan leaving you how?" Rusty asked, drawing out the last words.

Casey glared at her brother's impatience. "I told you it was complicated. Do you want to hear it or not?"

Rusty put up his hands quickly. "Sorry, just trying to keep up."

"Well anyways, I went after Frannie. I wanted to explain that I didn't plan this. All I wanted to do was just save the house." Casey admitted. "She wouldn't let me say anything; she just warned me that she created me and that she could destroy me.''

"Created you? Created you as what?" Rusty said.

"As the perfect candidate for the future presidency of ZBZ."

"Oh," Rusty answered, not quite sure what else to say. "And now she wants to 'destroy' you? She sounds like that pledge Jen-" Rusty cut off, knowing the subject of his former girlfriend was a sore spot for Casey, especially from all the trouble it caused his sister. "Like that pledge I heard about. The senator's daughter."

"Yeah, now Rebecca and Frannie can go join forces and see how much more of my life they can screw up." Casey muttered, watching her side as she changed lanes.

Rusty could see the irritation cut with anger running through Casey as she clicked her tongue and gripped the steering wheel. This was really eating at his sister. He couldn't help feeling sorry that they weren't closer growing up; despite the steps they had been taking the last few months. "It sounds like you've had a rough week. I'm sorry I haven't been much help to you lately."

"Rusty, this had nothing to do with you. This had to do with me and my problems. You couldn't have helped anyway." Casey dismissed.

Rusty opened his mouth, wanting to say more. But looking over to his sister, sympathy didn't appear to be something she was willing to accept. He closed his mouth for a moment before opening it once more. "So the old ZBZ president is out and you're now the reigning ZBZ president. Now how does Evan breaking up with you factor into this? He couldn't handle you being president as well as him?"

"No, that wasn't it. He didn't even know about me becoming president until he broke up with me." Casey sighed, letting out another deep breath.

God, she was starting to give herself a headache with this conversation.

"When I took Evan back, part of my decision had been swayed by a conversation I had with Frannie. She told me that Evan was a large factor in her wanting me as her presidential successor. Being president was something that I'd been working toward since I was a pledge freshman year. I wasn't ready to lose everything, especially a relationship that I had been in for almost two years. Evan and I had plans, we had goals. So, I took him back." God, she sounded like such a sellout, even to herself.

Anyways, fast-forwarding to now, Frannie made good on her little threat. I don't know what happened, but I think she went to Evan and told him about our conversation regarding me taking Evan back. I think she also told Evan I never loved him and I never could because I was still in love with someone else."

"Cappie."

Casey nodded. "Evan came and asked if it was true. Long story short, we got into it and when he asked me if Cappie and I had been involved at all since getting back together, I had to be honest and told Evan about kissing Cappie once, while we were working on a project. Then that was it. Evan told me since I was now president, I didn't need him anymore; then he left."

Rusty remembered this look of devastation once before, when he made one of the hardest decisions of his young life to tell Casey about Evan's infidelity. "I'm sure you won't believe me, but I'll say it anyway. You are too good for Evan Chambers, regardless of what he is."

Casey couldn't help smiling at her brother's idealism, as she once put it. "Well, I guess that's better than being pathetic."

"Case, I mean it when I told you I wasn't going to judge you. I'm just sorry that Evan meant enough to you to hurt you twice."

Casey merely nodded, unsure how to navigate this, this new closeness with her brother. "Yeah, well thank you for saying that. I appreciate it." Glancing down at the clock, she noticed that they'd been on the road for a little over an hour. "Rusty, I'm sorry I judged you and your relationship with Jen K. I know she means a lot to you."

Rusty just nodded, looking down at his clasped hands, remembering that he had yet to tell Casey about breaking it off with Jen K after all.

Casey divulged her story. Rusty guessed it was his turn to divulge.

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So what do you all think? Good? Bad? Totally off? Please press little drop box below and let me know! Reviews are greatly appreciated!!

I'm hoping on making this a 10-chapter story, one for each hour of their journey. I'd really like to bring up all the things that happened in the season finale, including some flashbacks into Casey and Cappie's relationship and the Cartwright's childhood.


End file.
